Food waste collections for all residents

Blackburn with Darwen borough council will begin collecting residents’ food waste from June 2026, with businesses of 10 employees or more expected to arrange for their own food waste to be collected before then.

The Government has mandated that Councils in England commence weekly food waste collections in 2026.

Currently, all households in Blackburn with Darwen are provided with separate bin collections for non-recyclable waste (burgundy bin), and for the recycling of paper and card (blue bin) and glass, cans, and plastic bottles (grey bin).

Households can also choose to recycle garden waste using the subscription based green waste service (brown bin). The introduction of a food waste collection service will result in all households receiving a small indoor caddy and an additional small 25 litre outside bin for the separation of food waste, which will be collected weekly.

Did you know that the residents of the borough produce 14,000 tonnes of food waste each year? And food waste amounts to over 40% of the contents of the burgundy bin, with half of that food waste either still in date or edible?

Several councils across the country have already introduced food waste collection services across their borough. Like these boroughs, once the service is introduced, we’re confident that the residents of Blackburn with Darwen will see how much food they are throwing away and will consider reducing food waste. The average household is wasting approximately £800 worth of edible food a year, with staples like bread, fruit, potatoes, rice, and pasta being some of the most binned items.

If you own or run a business in the borough, all businesses in England that employ 10 or more at one site must arrange for the collection of food waste from April 2025. Businesses with 10 employees or less will need to arrange for the collection of their food waste from 2027. Private contractors are available to provide the food waste collection service to businesses.

Why is collecting food waste important?

Globally, food waste is estimated to contribute 8-10% of total greenhouse gas emissions. If food waste were a country, it would be world’s third largest emitter after China and the USA. UK households produce around 6.4 million tonnes of food waste each year. Food waste is the largest single material found in residual waste bins, around a third of household waste is food waste.

Collecting food waste from households for recycling can offer a wide range of benefits that include:

• reducing damaging greenhouse gas emissions by removing the putrescent content from residual waste;
• producing compost for use as a soil improver;
• producing digestate fertiliser;
• generating heat and power through anaerobic digestion when linked to a combined heat and power (CHP) plant

The collections also support the strategic priorities of Blackburn with Darwen borough council’s corporate strategy, especially by acting on the climate emergency and supporting our aim to become carbon neutral by 2030.

What will it mean for me?

By June 2026, every household will receive a small kitchen caddy, caddy liners and an outside food waste bin. Residents will place a liner in the food caddy, which can be kept in the kitchen as a reminder to recycle all food leftovers and peelings. But no paper, cardboard or plastic can be put in the caddy. Once the food caddy is nearly full, the caddy liner can be tied and transferred to the larger food waste bin. The larger food waste bin would need to be stored outside the property and even has a self-locking lid, to stop animals accessing the food waste. On collection day, the food waste bin will need to be placed at the front of the property so that the contents can be tipped into the collection vehicle, with the bin returned to where it was collected from.

What it can also mean for you is that if you manage your food waste effectively, you could see your household food bill reduce.

Who will fund it?

Blackburn with Darwen has been allocated capital funding of £1,157,421 so far from the government, comprised of the following breakdown:

• £132,930 for Kitchen caddies
• £293,181 for Food waste bins
• £15,210 for large communal containers for blocks of flats
• £716,100 for food waste collection vehicles

Although this will heavily support the introduction of recycling food waste, it’s unlikely to cover the capital needed and therefore additional funding has been requested. At this stage, there is no direct cost to residents.

More information will be provided to residents ahead of the roll out of the food waste caddies, as well as step by step information on how to use them.

Councillor Jim Smith, Executive Member of Environment and Operations said ‘With the government making it mandatory for us to collect your food waste from 2026, we want to ensure that all residents of the borough are well equipped to recycle their food waste. This not only benefits you by making your burgundy bin cleaner, but also helps the wider climate issue we are all facing. I look forward to working with residents in the coming years to ensure everyone plays their part.’

To check out what you can recycle right now, visit our dedicated recycling website, BwD Recycle.